Monday, October 24, 2011

Killer Characters

Blogfest, that is!

All week the Killer Characters blogfest is going on, and there's still time to sign up if you'd like to participate. Just hop over to Deana Barnhart's to learn more and see who all is joining the fun. The pic above links you right to her blog.

Today's assignment: Favorite Literary Supporting Character (any character used to give dimension to the main character)

Alright, so keeping in the Halloween spirit I'm going with a dark theme. But either way, one of my all time faves for sheer creepiness alone, is Buffalo Bill from Silence of the Lambs. His whole persona just makes my skin crawl. I love it! lol

I love the Thomas Harris Hannibal Lecter series. All the stories are riveting, as well as the movies, though I think Silence of the Lambs is probably my fave of them all. And I really think it has something to do with Buffalo Bill being so provocative.

You probably remember him most as played by Ted Levine in the film. Did he do an outstanding job, or what? Buffalo Bill is an excellent example of a perfectly fleshed out character. Here's why:

* His mother was an alcoholic prostitute who abandoned him.
* He was abused by his foster parents, then abused further by his grandparents who adopted him.(This is why we can somewhat sympathize with him. This is why he's so bad.)
* He murdered his grandparents at age 15
* He was sent to a psych ward where he learned to be a tailor. (how odd and totally cool at the same time)
* He found work after rehab and became involved in a relationship with a man there.
* Once the man left him and found a new lover, Bill killed and flayed the lover.
* Buffalo Bill becomes fascinated with the metamorphosis of the moth, and envisions himself going through such a metamorphosis to become a woman.
* Only he needs to tailor a woman suit, so he pretends to be an injured man loading heavy boxes into his van and accepting help from women, whom he then kidnaps and throws in a pit in his basement.
* Once he has a woman in his house, he starves her until her skin is loose enough to easily remove.
* He refers to his victims as "things." For example, my fave line from the whole story: "It puts the lotion in the basket or it gets the hose."
* He adores his poodle named Precious and talks to it in baby talk while torturing his victims.
* He collects exotic moths and and places a moth in the throat of one of his victims, the victim that turns up in the river.
* Ironically, it is the moth that brings about Buffalo Bill's eventual capture and death. It's the moth found inside the victim that alerts the FBI of the killer's possible association with exotic moths. It is the moth inside Buffalo Bill's home that signals to agent Starling who he actually is when she shows up at his house coincidentally.
* He adds dimension to Starling's character, allowing her to see for herself what she is capable of.

The whole story is genius, in my opinion. Hannibal Lecter is one of my favorite characters as well, and it's debatable on which is the actual antagonist. They both add dimension to Starling's character, but both are antagonistic as well. Hannibal and Buffalo Bill are not meant to be "liked." But it is the very emotion and repulsion they evoke that makes them unforgettable, powerful characters. Something tells me Thomas Harris didn't just dream them up during a first draft. Buffalo Bill is extremely well thought out and detailed down to the very origin of his existence. There is a reason for everything, and as the reader, we need to know what those reasons are, so we can relate to and sympathize with the character.

Here's to you , Bill!

What do you think of Buffalo Bill? Do you think of him more as a supporting character or antagonist? Who is your fave supporting character?

Oooh! james gumb take a bow - only, do it far far away. Great, creeptacular choice. It's also interesting how a character who would traditionally be the antagonist (since he's the one killing the girls) is really the secondary character. great choice

Oh, I think he's a fantastic choice! I felt a chill just looking at the pics of him. All these years later, and I still think this movie scared me more than any other ever has. Buffalo Bill was one scary loon. Great post!

I actually think Hannibal is the supporting character and BB is the prime antagonist. What Thomas does so well and what all writers should do with their antagonists is make them sympathetic in some way. Yeah, Bill is a very bad guy, but he lived most of his young life in hell and he's trapped in something he is not, a man. He's human and we know that, but we can see how he became such a monster.

Perhaps the best thing of all about him is that you can read "Red Dragon" and know that Thomas Harris surely knew plenty more about him that was left off the pages. Those times when an author gets to know a character so well that the character becomes real to them lead to those times when a reader experiences a character as if the character belongs to real life!

Great choice! Definitely creepy and horrid--a psycho in the "best" sense of the word. I agree with your analysis of him as a supporting character; I think Lecter was the real antagonist. Maybe he wasn't the "bad guy" in Silence of the Lambs in the sense that he wasn't killing those women, but he certainly was Clarice's antagonist. And BB lent depth to both the story and the MC, allowed Clarice (as you said) to overcome personal hurdles and aided her character arc. Good job, and lots to think about!

This is Florence tricking blogger by using "anon." PK, you picked one of my favorite supporting characters. Actually, Thomas Harris has a genius for connecting us to the sad and human side of horror. It is also the hallmark of most Stephen Kings horros. I find it a joy to read those who can connect us to this emotion for someone we are supposed to hate.

Mysteries on all levels are my passion and so I connect to writers who can provide more than one dimensional villians. There is a character in the Prey series by John Sandford, who the main character Lucas actually hoped would retire from her life of crime so he would never have to capture her. She was featured in two of this series and when the "end" came, not only was Lucas sad ... this fool cried :)

Wow... I think I need to read these books. Sounds like the characters are much more detailed than in the movie and Bill's character makes much more sense knowing all that background info. Great choice!

This is a great choice. He is perfect for the "KILLER Character Blogfest". I suppose he is an antagonist, but he fits better in the supporting literary category for this. I will always think of Hannibal Lecture as THE antagonist from this novel & film. You have made an exxcellent & creepy choice for this role.